GREAT READS → FAMILY DIARY Issue 813 · June 3, 2020

Ring Me: Chapter 2

Could he overlook her height to see how perfect she was for him?

Ring Me: Chapter 2

Shani Leiman with Zivia Reischer  

One of the most troubling things I’m confronted with is singles who have very specific criteria for who they’re willing to date.

Sometimes a guy has a certain look he thinks he needs, or a girl believes she needs a boy with a certain personality. Sometimes a girl or boy will refuse to date someone who doesn’t have a specific college degree, or will only consider someone from in town or from out of town, or will only date someone who agrees to start off in Israel or who agrees to move to Israel indefinitely.

I know everyone has their “thing.” But it’s painful to watch men and women pass up opportunities to meet good people simply because of peripherals they’re hung up on. Often, these conditions were formulated when the person may have been young and less mature, and now they’re entrenched forever.

My open, relaxed, friendly style has enabled me to make many shidduchim b’siyata d’Shmaya. As a bonus, I’ve also made many friends. Chevi was one of those friends. She reached out to me when she was 28 and dating a relative of mine — she wanted to clarify some information about him. She didn’t end up marrying him, but we had an instant connection and developed a close relationship.

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← Previous installment Ring Me: Chapter 1 Next installment → Ring Me: Chapter 3